Walk This Way

More and more pedestrians are being killed in traffic, and there's no way to make a light story of this. And it's not just local either; the pedestrian death rate is higher all across America.

Odd thing is, for the last decade, ped fatalities had been on a steady decline for the past ten years, and then all of a sudden, the trend is going the other way. The facts are in from the Governors Highway Safety Association, and they show there haven't been this many pedestrians dying in the last 30 years.

In fact, 6,200 pedestrians bought it on U.S. roads last year. That's up 4% since 2017 and an alarming 35% since 2008!

Here in Maryland, the death toll for walkers and bicyclists was up 25%.

“The alarm bells continue to sound on this issue,” says Jonathan Adkins, the Executive Director of the GHSA. “It’s clear we need to fortify our collective efforts to protect pedestrians and reverse the trend.”

So what's up with this? The GHSA points to "increased exposure for pedestrians," "inadequate pedestrian infrastructure" (crumbling roadways and sidewalks), and all those BA cars and trucks and SUVs on the road.  And of course, don't forget impairment on the part of drivers and walkers, and inattention to the road ahead or cars behind in favor of electronic devices.

“Crossing the street should not be a death sentence,” says Richard Retting, who wrote the Governor's Association report. “We have a range of proven infrastructure, engineering, and behavioral strategies that we know can reduce pedestrian deaths. Critical improvements to road and vehicle design are being made, but take significant time and resources to implement.”

So, while we wait for the roads to be built up to safe standards, it behooves us all - drivers and walkers alone - to be careful, to turn down the music, and to look out for people.

That doesn't sound like too much to ask, even in a day and age when people think 100% of themselves.